In Short…
Host Illinois (1-0-0) used a pair of first-half goals to build an early advantage as it dealt the Loyola University Chicago women's soccer team (0-1-0) a 3-1 defeat this evening in the 2019 regular season opener for both teams at the Illinois Soccer Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
 
Head Coach Barry Bimbi's Thoughts…
"It's a disappointing result for the high level that we played at tonight.  We have to avoid the mistakes we made in the back and capitalize on some of the multiple quality chances we had tonight.  We'll regroup and prepare for Kansas on Sunday."
 
How It Happened
The two in-state rivals traded attempts in the opening 15 minutes of play, with Makena Silber misfiring four minutes in before graduate student Simone Wark sent her attempt wide of goal in the 12^th minute.  Hope Breslin secured Illinois' breakthrough just in front of the 20-minute mark, directing her try from the edge of the 18-yard box inside the far post to make it 1-0.
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Hausmann, who made the first start of her career this evening, ensured the deficit stayed at one in the 28^th minute, parrying Silber's blast out of play.  Silber would not be denied six minutes later when she chased down a loose ball in the box and bested an onrushing Hausmann to send the Fighting Illini racing into halftime with a 2-0 lead.
 
Loyola came out firing to open the second stanza.  Sophomore Demi Limparis forced Jaelyn Cunningham, the Illinois netminder, into her first stop of the night in the 50^th minute of play before Hausmann responded with a denial of her own three minutes after, collecting Kendra Pasquale's shot.
 
Maggie Hillman pushed the margin to 3-0 at the hour mark, depositing a long pass from Breslin into the back of the net from 15 yards out.  The Maroon & Gold continued to push forward and were rewarded for their persistence in the 72^nd minute when senior Aleksa Tataryn finished off a feed from fellow senior Ari Banks to trim the gap to 3-1.  That would prove to be as close as the Ramblers could get, as Illinois closed out a season-opening victory.
 
Looking At The Numbers
- Tataryn, who is coming off a junior season that saw her close the year ranked third on the Rambler roster in overall points, tallied the 10^th goal of her career this evening.  The senior closed the game with a team-high three attempts.
- Illinois finished the night with a slim 11-10 edge in shots, a category in which Loyola held an 8-4 advantage in during the second half. 
- Hausmann recorded three saves in goal to lead Loyola's defensive efforts.
 
Up Next
Loyola wraps up a challenging season-opening road trip on Sunday afternoon when it takes on Kansas.  Kickoff from Rock Chalk Park is slated for 1 p.m.